prejudice

In the US, we cannot deny our historical and continuing practice of racism, sexism, and other forms of prejudice. Despite well-meaning legislation, we still see the effects of such discrimination, from the demographics of our socio-economic classes and our educational and health care systems to the traces of injustice reflected in our language and social consciousness. Things have improved over our country's brief history, particularly in the last fifty years, but intolerance continues in shaded forms.

Since September 11th, intolerance has grown from greater fear. The oxymoron "Islamic terrorist" has become a political catchphrase. Even the intended victims of prejudice have become confused in the blinding constriction of prejudice itself. At the Chicago airport, I met a soldier on his way home from serving in the Gulf. When I asked him to watch my suitcase while I went to the restroom, he replied, with a grin on his face, "Sure, I'll make sure no Iraqis get to it."

In the US, the daily mix of skin colors, religions, sexual identities, etcetera, seems to encourage emphasis of and breed antagonism over such differences. Political tensions with people of different faiths and genetic compositions only add fuel to the fire. But this prejudice does not thrive only in melting pots; it is alive and healthy in largely homogenous societies, too. In fact, I have witnessed more blatant acts of bigotry by laypeople in China than I ever have in the States.

Before going to the US, my Chinese coworker expressed her belief that many Americans are racist though they claim the ideal of equality. I could not deny her this analysis. But in the US, she did not observe any such acts of discrimination. Whether the racism she expected was non-existent or simply hidden from view, equality and respect were what she observed. I cannot say the same for my experience here.

In China, the Shanghainese are known for being arrogant and superficial, for looking down upon fellow citizens from less developed or less westernized areas. Those from Beijing are also branded as haughty, though in an aristocratic rather than a materialistic vein. However, no regional prejudice seems more pointed or generally accepted than that against the Uyghurs. The Uyghurs are the largest ethnic group in Xinjiang, a region in the northwest populated mostly by Muslim Turkic groups and other Chinese minorities. The Uyghurs are stereotyped as unclean and uneducated - and, especially, as thieves. They are the butt of jokes, the accepted and expected villain in stories of petty crime. I've seen people avoid them on the streets, walking at a safe distance if they must cross paths. I've even seen a woman warn passersby to watch out for their belongings because Uyghurs were coming their way. Uyghurs are the gypsies, the untouchables, of China.

Beyond their borders, the Chinese hold a deep prejudice against people from certain neighboring Asian countries. A number of Chinese I've met feel a latent hatred towards the Japanese, a remnant of often tumultuous relations between their two nations. Those in my grandparents' generation can still recall the bloody struggle for Shanghai in the Second Sino-Japanese War, followed directly by the battle and well-known massacre in Nanjing. The hostility has filtered down to today's generation. A few months ago, a Chinese coworker errantly sent an email through our office listserv calling for her compatriots to denounce Japan's attempt to become a permanent member of the UN Security Council. And comparing somebody's physical appearance to that of a Japanese may be seen by some as insulting.

Koreans receive their fair share of discriminatory remarks from the Chinese, too. The most common stereotype of Koreans is that they have all had plastic surgery because, as my real estate agent so cheerfully put it, "they are all so ugly." Apparently there is a joke about a beautiful Korean couple walking down the street pushing an ugly baby in a stroller. You can guess what the punch line might be.

Minorities in China comprise approximately 7% of the population. In the US, that percentage more than quadruples. Regardless of percentage, both our countries have an Other. And it seems that wherever there is an Other, prejudice thrives.

Maybe it is our nature to feel this way. Maybe it is human nature to fear the unknown. But in so many other ways we have transcended our nature, so what is stopping us now? Enough of our petty prejudices. Let us go find out and make it known: we are all the Other.